Managing Critical Lease Dates
There are plenty of articles out there that talk about Top or Best Commercial Property Management Software. Many articles list and rank software based on specific features. Some articles are biased in how they rank their software of choice. What all these articles fail to talk about is what specifically should drive your decision in picking the right software. What is it that you do on a day to day basis when managing your commercial real estate? Once you answer this question, you should be able to determine what commercial property management software is right for you. Lets break down some of the common tasks when it comes to managing a commercial real estate.
Managing Critical Lease Dates.
A Commercial Real Estate Lease is typically a lengthy legal document with 50 or more pages. There are many critical dates in the Lease that must be followed or kept track of. For starters, Lease Commencement and Lease End Dates define the start and end dates of a Lease. Possession Date defines the date the Tenant took possession of the space. Rent Commencements defines when Tenant should start paying rent. Commercial Real Estate leases typically run for a period of longer than 5 years and do have scheduled rent escalations. Keeping track of those dates is critical to ensure that your Tenant pays in accordance with the terms of the Lease.
In addition to critical lease dates, there are other dates that Landlords or Property managers need to be aware of. Tenant’s insurance expiration dates is critical to know when Tenant’s insurance coverage expires. A property owner must ensure that all tenants carry proper liability coverage. Knowing when it expires is important. Certain Tenants have options to renew their Lease and notification to Landlords must occur timely. Knowing when Tenant is required to send you notice is key.
Collecting Rent.
Collecting rent, especially during financial difficult times like COVID, is challenging. One of the most essential features of a top commercial property management software is the ability to invoice Tenants. When considering a commercial property management software tool consider its Tenant Invoicing capabilities. Does the software take all of the tenant’s obligations when generating invoices to your tenant. Does it include Common Area Charges and Real Estate taxes? The bottom line is that clearly defined charges on a tenant’s invoice make it easier for you to collect the rent due.
Tracking Expenses.
Managing an investment property means you have to keep track of both income and expenses. Software with the ability to cater for both is a must. If your tenant contributes towards Common Area Maintenance or Real Estate Taxes then you must keep track of all Operating Expenses to accurately invoice your tenant. A true Commercial Property Management Software must be able to handle both income and expense tracking.
Running Reports.
If you are managing property for someone else, have partners in the investment property or have debt on the property, then reporting is critical for your business. It also is critical for during year end and tax season. Reports are typically demanded by Lenders, partners and or your clients, if you are managing properties for someone else. Property Management Software must be able to provide reports that cater for the real estate investment industry. There are several industry standard reports for commercial investment properties such as the Rent Roll Report and Net Operating Income statement that the software should be able to provide.
CAM Reconciliation.
NNN Leases are common in Commercial Real Estate investments. Whenever you have a tenant contribute towards CAM, Taxes and Insurance, it’s expected for the Landlord or Property manager to perform CAM reconciliation reports. We have written extensively about CAM Reconciliation in our other articles. In short, your top commercial property management software of choice must be able to perform CAM reconciliation.
Accounting.
Last, but not least, accounting capabilities should be at the forefront of any property management software. If you are tracking income and expenses then why not have all of the capabilities in one place? There is no need to use Quickbooks or other software for accounting and another software for its property management features. Not only is this counter productive, it also is an unnecessary expense. Make sure that your commercial property management software of choice supports industry standard accounting principals.
In summary, before making your choice for the top commercial property management software, determine what it is you need to make your day to day life easier. There are many options out there, but only few will have what you need. Give UnitConnect a try and see how we consider ourselves top software providers in management of commercial real estate.
